This week, a petition was launched to call on the City of Victoria to build a public, multi-use arena.
Kathryn Bernardo, who launched this petition, wants to see Victoria build an arena that could expand the capacity for youths getting into sports, as well as be more readily available to the public in comparison to the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre (SOFMC).
The SOFMC was completed in 2005, and the City of Victoria paid around $40 million at that time to have the arena built. Part of that deal was to have public skate times and to have the facility made available for public bookings.
At the time, a new arena was necessary as the Memorial Arena, also known as the ‘Barn on Blanshard,’ was originally built in 1949 and was at the end of its lifespan.
City Councillor Matt Dell told Victoria Buzz that he doesn’t oppose this type of project and agrees that Victoria could use more arena space.
However, he says that the scale of this type of project just isn’t possible with the current major projects currently underway.
“Obviously, we’re kind of missing out on that small-rink capacity, where you have a small community rink that can be used for seniors hockey and ball hockey and all that, and we don’t have that,” said Dell.
“I think it would be awesome for the City to have something like that and hopefully that’s something we can have in the future, but right now we have no plans for it.”
He added that the current council’s focus, as far as major projects go, is to build a replacement for Crystal Pool. This is something that could have been done by past councils, but until now, a new pool could not be approved.
“The City can kind of do one big capital project at a time,” he continued.
“We did the arena in 2005, we did the Johnson Street Bridge [around] 2008, and reminding you that we’re still paying for both of those…the arena won’t be paid off until around 2036.”
Following these projects came the new fire hall and the recent approval of the Crystal Pool replacement. Dell says that once the pool is done, council can look at what the next major project will be.
“I think it’s a great conversation to have, looking at what we’re going to do for a new recreational facility—there’s no doubt that we need one,” Dell explained.
When asked about what barriers a project like this may face down the road, if the City is considering building a new multi-use arena, he said that there would be a few: location, funding and public demand.
In the meantime, Dell said that one of the biggest benefits of the structure that the Capital Regional District upholds, is that what some municipalities lack, others step in and are able to fill the gaps.
“So we have the big arena for big events, but Oak Bay doesn’t. Some people might use the tennis bubble in Oak Bay, but come in to use the arena,” said Dell.
A prospective project of this scale will likely take time, according to Dell, but isn’t outside the realm of possibility for the city’s future.
As of this publication, the recently launched petition has just 13 signatures.
